1. Home
  2. Scrabble Dictionary. Word Meaning and Points

Zebra in Scrabble and Meaning

Lookup Word Points and Definitions

What does zebra mean? Is zebra a Scrabble word?

How many points in Scrabble is zebra worth? zebra how many points in Words With Friends? What does zebra mean? Get all these answers on this page.

Scrabble® and Words with Friends® points for zebra

See how to calculate how many points for zebra.

Is zebra a Scrabble word?

Yes. The word zebra is a Scrabble US word. The word zebra is worth 16 points in Scrabble:

Z10E1B3R1A1

Is zebra a Scrabble UK word?

Yes. The word zebra is a Scrabble UK word and has 16 points:

Z10E1B3R1A1

Is zebra a Words With Friends word?

Yes. The word zebra is a Words With Friends word. The word zebra is worth 17 points in Words With Friends (WWF):

Z10E1B4R1A1

Our tools

Valid words made from Zebra

Results

5-letter words (2 found)

BRAZE,ZEBRA,

4-letter words (5 found)

ABER,BARE,BEAR,BRAE,RAZE,

3-letter words (11 found)

ARB,ARE,BAE,BAR,BEZ,BRA,EAR,ERA,REB,REZ,ZEA,

2-letter words (10 found)

AB,AE,AR,BA,BE,EA,ER,RE,ZA,ZE,

1-letter words (1 found)

E,

You can make 29 words from zebra according to the Scrabble US and Canada dictionary.

Definitions and meaning of zebra

zebra

English

Etymology

1600; borrowed from Italian zebra, from Portuguese zebra, zebro (“zebra”), from Old Galician-Portuguese enzebro, ezebra, azebra (“wild ass”), from earlier cebrario (882), ezebrario (897), from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin equiferus (“wild horse”) (Pliny), from equus (“horse”) + ferus (“wild”).(Can this(+) etymology be sourced?)

While the word was traditionally pronounced with a long vowel in the first syllable in standard English, during the twentieth century a vowel shift occurred in regions of England, with the shortening of the first vowel. This pronunciation is now used throughout the UK and most Commonwealth nations. The long-vowel pronunciation remains standard in Canadian and American English.

(unlikely diagnosis): Originates in the advice often given to medical students, "when you hear hoofbeats, think of horses, not zebras".

(referee): In reference to the black and white striped shirts they wear.

Pronunciation

  • (Commonwealth, Canada) IPA(key): /ˈzɛbɹə/
    • Hyphenation: zeb‧ra
    • Rhymes: -ɛbɹə
  • (Canada, US, and traditionally UK) IPA(key): /ˈziːbɹə/, (Indic) /ˈziːbɾaː/
  • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

Noun

zebra (plural zebra or zebras)

  2. Any of three species of subgenus Hippotigris: E. grevyi, E. quagga, or E. zebra, all with black and white stripes and native to Africa.
  3. (sports, slang) A referee.
  4. (medicine, slang) An unlikely diagnosis, especially for symptoms probably caused by a common ailment.
  5. (medicine, by extension) Someone who has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome or hypermobility spectrum disorder
  6. (vulgar, derogatory, slang, ethnic slur) A biracial person, specifically one born to a Sub-Saharan African person and a white person.
  7. (informal) A zebra cichlid (Amatitlania nigrofasciata).
  8. Any of various papilionid butterflies of the subgenus Paranticopsis of the genus Graphium, having black and white markings.
  9. A zebra crossing.

Usage notes

  • (biracial person): The term zebra, as used in its pejorative sense, was popularized on the television situation comedy The Jeffersons. The term was used by the series protagonist, George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley), to express disdain for his daughter-in-law, Jenny Willis Jefferson, whose father was white and mother was black.

Hyponyms

  • (animal of genus Equus): Burchell's zebra, Grevy's zebra, quagga, plains zebra, mountain zebra
  • (unlikely diagnosis): fascinoma

Derived terms

Translations

See also

  • quagga
  • Equus burchelli, Equus grevyi, Equus quagga, Equus zebra

References

Anagrams

  • Zaber, braze

Basque

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish cebra.

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -ebra, -a
  • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

Noun

zebra anim

  1. zebra

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

  • “zebra”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]
  • “zebra”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005

Catalan

Etymology

Inherited from Old Catalan atzebra, from Old Galician-Portuguese *ezevra, *ezevro.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): (Central) [ˈze.βɾə]
  • IPA(key): (Balearic) [ˈze.bɾə]
  • IPA(key): (Valencia) [ˈze.bɾa]

Noun

zebra f (plural zebres)

  1. zebra

Derived terms

  • peix zebra
  • zebrat

Further reading

  • “zebra” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

Cebuano

Etymology

Borrowed from English zebra, from Italian zebra, from Portuguese zebra, zebro (“zebra”), from Old Galician-Portuguese enzebro, ezebra, azebra (“wild ass”), from earlier cebrario (882), ezebrario (897), from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin equiferus (“wild horse”) (Pliny), from equus (“horse”) + ferus (“wild”).

Noun

zebra

  1. a zebra; any of three species of genus Equus: E. grevyi, E. quagga, or E. zebra, all with black and white stripes and native to Africa
  2. a pattern or motif similar to the stripes of a zebra
  3. (informal) an animal with zebra-like stripes

Corsican

Etymology

From Portuguese zebra (“wild horse”), from zebro, from Old Galician-Portuguese zevro, from *ezevro, from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin *equiferus, from equus (“horse”) + ferus (“wild”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzɛbra/

Noun

zebra f (plural zebre)

  1. Alternative form of zebru

References

  • https://infcor.adecec.net/

Crimean Tatar

Etymology

Probably from Russian зебра (zebra), from Italian zebra

Noun

zebra

  1. zebra
    Synonym: qaşqalı at

Declension

References

  • “zebra”, in Luğatçıq (in Russian)

Czech

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈzɛbra]

Noun

zebra f

  1. zebra

Declension

Derived terms

Further reading

  • “zebra”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
  • “zebra”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
  • “zebra”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech), 2008–2025

Danish

Noun

zebra c (singular definite zebraen, plural indefinite zebraer)

  1. zebra

Declension

Derived terms

  • zebrafinke c (“zebra finch”)

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Portuguese zebra, from Old Galician-Portuguese enzebro, ezebra, azebra (“wild ass”), from earlier cebrario (882), ezebrario (897), from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin equiferus (“wild horse”). The second sense is a shortening of zebrapad.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzeː.braː/
  • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

Noun

zebra m (plural zebra's, diminutive zebraatje n)

  1. a zebra, a black-and-white striped equid of the genus Equus; Equus zebra, Equus quagga or Equus grevyi [from late 16th c.]
  2. a zebra crossing, a pedestrian crossing [from mid 1950s.]
    Synonym: zebrapad

Hypernyms

  • (pedestrian crossing): oversteekplaats

Hyponyms

  • (zebra): quagga

Derived terms

  • zebrahaai
  • zebrapad
  • zebraprint

Esperanto

Etymology

From zebro (“zebra”) +‎ -a.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzebra/
  • Rhymes: -ebra
  • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

Adjective

zebra (accusative singular zebran, plural zebraj, accusative plural zebrajn)

  1. zebrine, hippotigrine

Hypernyms

  • ekveda (“equid”)

Hungarian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈzɛbrɒ]
  • Hyphenation: zeb‧ra
  • Rhymes: -rɒ

Noun

zebra (plural zebrák)

  1. (biology) zebra (animal)
  2. (road transport) pedestrian crossing, crosswalk, zebra crossing

Declension

Synonyms

  • (crosswalk): gyalogátkelőhely

Derived terms

(Compound words):

  • zebrapinty

Further reading

  • zebra in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.

Indonesian

Noun

zebra (plural zebra-zebra)

  1. zebra
  2. zebra walk

Italian

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): */ˈd͡zɛ.bra/
  • Rhymes: -ɛbra
  • Hyphenation: zè‧bra

Noun

zebra f (plural zebre)

  1. zebra
  2. (in the plural, informal) zebra crossing/crosswalk

Kashubian

Etymology

Borrowed from Polish zebra.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzɛ.bra/
  • Rhymes: -ɛbra
  • Syllabification: ze‧bra

Noun

zebra f

  1. zebra (striped mammal of the genus Equus)

References

  • Eùgeniusz Gòłąbk (2011) “zebra”, in Słownik Polsko-Kaszubski / Słowôrz Pòlskò-Kaszëbsczi‎[4]

Ladin

Noun

zebra f (plural zebres)

  1. zebra

Latin

Pronunciation

  • (Classical Latin) IPA(key): /ˈze.bra/, [ˈz̪ɛbrä]
  • (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /ˈd͡ze.bra/, [ˈd̪͡z̪ɛːbrä]

Noun

zebra f (genitive zebrae); first declension

  1. (New Latin) zebra (Equus zebra)

Declension

First-declension noun.

Latvian

Etymology

Possibly ultimately from a Congolese name for the animal, via Portuguese, via some other European language. Possibly also ultimately from Latin equiferus (“wild horse”), via Portuguese and/or Italian.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzɛbra/

Noun

zebra f (4th declension)

  1. zebra (esp. Equus zebra)

Declension

Polish

Etymology

Borrowed from French zèbre.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈzɛ.bra/
  • Rhymes: -ɛbra
  • Syllabification: ze‧bra

Noun

zebra f

  2. zebra (any equid of the subgenus Hippotigris)
  4. (colloquial) crosswalk, pedestrian crossing, zebra crossing (pedestrian crossing featuring broad white stripes)
    Synonyms: pasy, przejście dla pieszych
  5. black and white striped pattern

Declension

Related terms

Descendants

  • → Kashubian: zebra

Further reading

  • zebra in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
  • zebra in Polish dictionaries at PWN
  • zebry in PWN's encyclopedia

Portuguese

Etymology 1

    From zebro, from Old Galician-Portuguese zevro (“European wild ass”), from Vulgar Latin *eciferus, from Latin equiferus (“wild horse”), from equus (“horse”) + ferus (“wild”). Compare Spanish cebra.

    Senses 2 and 3 of the word comes from the popular Brazilian betting game jogo do bicho, in which the animal is absent, therefore it is unlikely that a zebra will be drawn.

    Pronunciation

    • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

    Noun

    zebra f (plural zebras)

    1. zebra
    2. (Brazil, slang) A victorious competitor initially thought unlikely to win, especially in sports; an underdog
      Synonym: azarão
    3. (Brazil, slang) an unexpected result in a competition
    4. (Brazil, derogatory) idiot, stupid person
      Synonym: burro
    5. (Brazil, informal) prison uniform
    6. (Portugal, informal) zebra crossing
    7. (Portugal, informal) vice, a bad habit
    8. (Beira) a type of lanky spinning top
    9. (motor racing) curb (line of flat curbstones on the corners of racing tracks)
    10. zebra pattern
    11. (obsolete) cow
    Usage notes
    • The gender of this Portuguese zoonym is always feminine: when the gender of the being itself must be specified, use “zebra macho” for male, and “zebra fêmea” for female. Here, macho is treated as an undeclinable noun and don't necessarily need to agree in gender with the referent, but would change to macha if so.
    Derived terms
    Related terms
    Descendants
    • → German: Zebra
      • → Hunsrik: Zebra
    • → Italian: zebra
      • → English: zebra
      • → Turkish: zebra
    • → New Latin: zebra

    Etymology 2

    See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

    Pronunciation

    • Hyphenation: ze‧bra

    Verb

    zebra

    1. inflection of zebrar:
      1. third-person singular present indicative
      2. second-person singular imperative

    Further reading

    • “zebra”, in iDicionário Aulete (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2025
    • “zebra” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913
    • “zebra”, in Dicio – Dicionário Online de Português (in Portuguese), Porto: 7Graus, 2009–2025
    • “zebra”, in Dicionário infopédia da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Porto: Porto Editora, 2003–2025
    • “zebra”, in Michaelis Dicionário Brasileiro da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), São Paulo: Editora Melhoramentos, 2015–2025
    • “zebra”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2025

    Serbo-Croatian

    Pronunciation

    • IPA(key): /zêbra/

    Noun

    zȅbra f (Cyrillic spelling зе̏бра)

    1. zebra

    Declension

    Slovene

    Pronunciation

    • IPA(key): /zèːbra/, /zéːbra/

    Noun

    zẹ̄bra f

    1. zebra

    Declension

    Further reading

    • “zebra”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU (in Slovene), 2014–2025

    Spanish

    Pronunciation

    • IPA(key): /ˈtsebɾa/ [ˈt̪se.β̞ɾa]
    • Rhymes: -ebɾa

    Noun

    zebra f (plural zebras)

    1. Obsolete spelling of cebra.

    Further reading

    • “zebra”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

    Swedish

    Alternative forms

    • sebra

    Noun

    zebra c

    1. zebra

    Declension

    References

    • zebra in Svensk ordbok (SO)
    • zebra in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
    • zebra in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

    Turkish

    Etymology

    Borrowed from Italian zebra.

    Pronunciation

    • IPA(key): [ˈzeb.ɾɑ]
    • Hyphenation: zeb‧ra

    Noun

    zebra (definite accusative zebrayı, plural zebralar)

    1. zebra

    Declension


    Source: wiktionary.org